(USNewsBreak.com) – Hackers and bad actors are always looking for ways to get their hands on sensitive data. Sometimes, they hold it for ransom, or they might use it to their benefit, causing strife for those whose information they stole. They don’t limit themselves to preying on individuals, either. Large corporations have fallen victim to cyberattacks and breaches that put data in the wrong people’s hands. Automaker Nissan faced this scenario last year.
In November, Nissan became the victim of a data breach that exposed employees’ data, including Social Security numbers. The breach affected more than 53,000. The North American arm of the company notified employees of the attack in a town hall last December. However, it recently addressed the issue in a letter dated May 15, which was reported by news outlets. Following the cyberattack, the company reported the incident to law enforcement and “began taking immediate action to investigate, contain, and successfully terminate the threat.”
During its investigation, Nissan learned that hackers had obtained access to files containing sensitive employee data. Nissan notified each employee to inform them what type of data the breach had affected and noted that the cybercriminals hadn’t breached financial information. The letter also noted the investigation found “no indication that any information has been misused” or that the hacker targeted this particular data subset.
However, Nissan is offering its employees a 2-year Experian IdentityWorks membership to monitor their data for fraud activity. They asked workers to enroll by August 30 to take advantage of the offer. The company also notified US officials after they discovered the breach.
Cybersecurity officials have speculated on how someone could have accessed the data, with one expert saying the hacker possibly obtained the information from a current employee and entered the system through Nissan’s Virtual Private Network (VPN). That would have allowed the thief to circumvent security protocols and escape detection.
Hackers are becoming more skilled at evading such measures and have recently aimed at ambitious targets like Microsoft, Prudential, and AT&T.
Copyright 2024, USNewsBreak.com
